ClickFire Media recently designed their first iOS game, based on the popular Travel Channel show, Man Vs. Food which is now live in the Apple AppStore for iPhone and iPad and available on the Android platform.
Press Release from ClickFire Media
ClickFire Media recently designed their first iOS game, based on the popular Travel Channel show, Man Vs. Food which is now live in the Apple AppStore for iPhone and iPad and available on the Android platform.
ClickFire Media was initially approached about the project by the Scripps Network which handles various channels including The Travel Channel. Senior Interactive Producer Matt DeSimone notes, "They wanted to develop an app for their hit Travel Channel show, Man Vs. Food," he explains. "And they felt that with our experience and interactive development and approach, and especially our humor and what we bring to the table, we would be an ideal partner in developing the app."
The first challenge was to develop a game that gamers would keep returning to. To this end, the team at ClickFire Media (CFM) began researching successful games and analyzing what elements worked and didn't work. "We're all pretty big gamers here, and so we started with all the games that we like to play, especially ones that use the features of mobile devices, such as the accelorometer, which detects tilting and lets you move the device around,'' reports DeSimone.
As big fans of the show, the team had "a lot of fun" developing the concept, he adds. "I've never missed an episode, so this was like a dream job for us. And one of the keys to mobile development is getting users involved with all the features available on the phones today."
What the team came up with was a simple but effective idea; each player needs to build a big stack of food and then eat it within a time limit, much like the Travel Channel show itself. And while stacking games have been done before, the CFM team used individual challenges from the actual show. This means that if a gamer is particularly fond of, say, The Indianapolis Burger Challenge episode, they can stack the food from that specific show, and the same with shows from other cities around the country.
In addition to designing the game concept, the layout and all graphics, the CFM team then took the concept a step further by adding in an extra "Wow!" factor. "We always like to find that extra something for everything we do, which goes beyond that 'Wow' factor to a sort of 'I can't believe they did that' level," DeSimone explains. "So when you're ready to eat the stack, if the user actually says 'Nom, nom, nom, nom, nom' into the microphone whenever they complete a challenge, it will then eat the stack of food."
The game was developed with three levels for each challenge; users have to build and eat a stack of a certain height within a time limit, and Level One equates to a 4-foot stack that has to be consumed within 60 seconds.
The job took the CFM team of nine about four months to complete from start to finish, and went very smoothly.
"We were on time, on budget, and the client was thrilled," sums up DeSimone. "It was definitely one of those dream jobs where you're really excited to come in and work on it everyday."
Credits:Interactive Design: ClickFire MediaExecutive Producer(s): Peter Corbett, John LevySenior Interactive Producer: Matt DeSimoneCreative Director: Nick AgderianArt Director: Andrew HessProduction Artist: Adam Aharon
About ClickFire Media:ClickFire Media is an interactive design studio specializing in multi-platform, media-rich creative campaigns. CFM partners with agencies and entertainment industry clients in the conceptualization, design and development of fully-integrated, consistently branded experiences. Through insight and innovation, CFM combines that latest interactive technologies with the best design, video, animation and live action skills from Click 3X to deliver integrated solutions in the ever-developing media landscape.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
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